Eddie Dunbar ended a long, frustrating period with victory on stage 11 of the Vuelta a España on Wednesday, soloing to a brilliant victory in Padrón.
The Irish Jayco-AlUla rider was part of the day’s big breakaway group and bided his time in the finale before launching a superbly-timed attack with about 600 meters to go.
He powered in two seconds clear of the next riders, Quinten Hermans (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Max Poole (Team DSM-Firmenich-PostNL).
Dunbar was seventh in last year’s Giro d’Italia but endured a spate of crashes in the past two seasons, being forced to withdraw from the 2023 Vuelta and this year’s Giro as a result.
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“It was pretty difficult. Since the Vuelta last year I’ve had a lot of downs and not many ups. They were difficult moments mentally and physically, coming back from injury,” said Dunbar, who turns 28 on Sunday.
“I’ve had numerous times in my head where I thought that I might not have a future in the sport just because of the crashes and the injuries I have had. This year after the Giro when I injured my LCL, I thought that could be the nail in the coffin as they say, in terms of my cycling career.”
Dunbar said that family and friends kept him going, naming his partner Niamh in particular.
The Cork man started this year’s Vuelta hoping to race for the general classification but had to reassess when he lost time due to tough weather conditions.
“I actually have really good legs, but when temperatures are over 40 degrees like last week, it just doesn’t work for me, unfortunately,” he explained.
“That’s not an excuse because there are very good bike riders who handled the heat very well last week, chapeau to them. They were the hardest conditions I’ve ever raced in for sure.
“Growing up in Ireland, I got used to racing in 12 degrees, so 40 degree heat isn’t my forte. But today makes it all better.”
The stage was held on undulating terrain with several short, steep climbs. Dunbar prefers bigger mountains but made the most of the route, getting into the day’s big break and then biding his time when his team-mate Filippo Zana went on the attack on the final hill.
That move was reeled in and Dunbar then waited until the final kilometre, launching his winning surge.
Race leader Ben O’Connor (Decathlon-Ag2r La Mondiale) was caught out by a powerful attack by three-time Vuelta winner Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) and Enric Mas (Movistar Team) on the final climb. He faded and ultimately conceded 37 seconds, seeing his overall lead reduced.
However, he remains three minutes and 16 seconds ahead of Roglic, with Mas now at 3.58. Ten stages remain and he said that the upcoming terrain should play more to his strengths.
“I am excited to get into the mountains again. It is hilly here but the punchy finishes here are super hard. If I am not at my best, it can be difficult.So hopefully once we get to the mountains I can be to how I was a few days ago in Granada,” said O’Connor, who is in search of his first grand tour win.
As for Dunbar, the stage saw him move up to 18th overall and with cooler weather likely for the rest of the Vuelta, he could make further progress. Chasing a second stage win might well be a bigger priority, though.
Either way he will finish the race with much better confidence and morale than before.
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